Health and Lifestyle 2020: A Year in Review
2020-12-29
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1From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report.
2Today, we look back on the year 2020.
3In early January, few people knew about a disease that was spreading in the Chinese city of Wuhan.
4It was caused by a coronavirus similar to SARS which first appeared in southern China in 2002 and MERS which struck the Middle East in 2012.
5An early report by the Associated Press gave a short timeline of important events at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
6January 23: The World Health Organization said the viral disease in China that has sickened hundreds of people is not yet a global health emergency.
7January 24: China reports that the number of virus cases has increased to 1,287, and the number of deaths rose to 41.
8January 26: The United States confirmed five cases of the new virus. All cases were people who traveled to the Chinese city of Wuhan.
9On January 30, the World Health Organization's timeline states that the WHO Director-General declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.
10This is the WHO's highest level of warning.
11The next day, U.S. President Donald Trump ordered most entry by foreign nationals from China suspended.
12By February 1, the disease had reportedly killed more than 200 people in China and infected thousands.
13The fast-spreading virus had been confirmed in more than 20 countries and territories.
14The list included Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia.
15But countries outside of Asia - including the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, Britain, and France - had reported cases.
16Most of those who had been infected had recently visited Wuhan.
17China barred travel from Wuhan and other cities in central Hubei province.
18The ban placed a partial quarantine on more than 50 million people - something that had never happened before.
19In March, Trump restricted travel from Europe and declared a national emergency.
20To stop the spread of the virus, Spain locked down its 46 million citizens.
21France ordered the closing of its most popular attractions - the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre art museum, the cafes, and restaurants.
22Other governments also took measures to contain the coronavirus.
23British Prime Minister Boris Johnson closed most stores and banned gatherings for three weeks to stop coronavirus.
24Italy overtook China as the country with most coronavirus-related deaths.
25The Johns Hopkins University online Coronavirus Resource Center has been tracking the number of cases and deaths.
26On December 24, it reported that over 1.7 million people have died from COVID-19 around the world.
27The United States has been hit the hardest with more than 320,000 reported deaths.
28Second is Brazil with more than 189,000. India is third with just over 146,000.
29But there was also good news.
30In September the AP also reported that countries on the African continent had been praised for their efforts early in the pandemic.
31As new tests for the virus became available, cases began to increase again in November in countries around the world.
32Officials have blamed holiday travel and gatherings for increases in COVID-19 cases in both Canada and the United States.
33The U.S. has experienced an increase in both infections and deaths.
34In December, several countries again tightened restrictions on their citizens to reduce the increase in COVID cases.
35On December 16, cases in Italy neared 2 million with about 70,000 deaths.
36That made it the highest in Europe.
37Also on December 16, the AP reported that South Korea was also experiencing a surge, or fast increase in cases.
38However, the end of the year also saw promising news - news of effective vaccines.
39Two vaccines, one made by the U.S. company Pfizer and Germany's BioNtech, and another by Moderna, have been approved for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
40Officials have announced the goal of vaccinating at least 20 million Americans by the end of the year.
41On December 8, Britain announced it had started its vaccination effort.
42Ninety-year-old Margaret Keenan became the first patient to get the Pfizer vaccine in Britain.
43Then in late-December, reports from Britain and South Africa suggested that the virus had begun to change, or mutate.
44However, details of a possible mutated virus remain unclear.
45It is still unknown if this mutated virus will be a problem for the current vaccines.
46But health officials agree that the approval of effective vaccines marks a turning point in the coronavirus health crisis.
47In 2020, the worldwide health crisis not only changed how people worked and what they did.
48It added new words to everyday speech.
49Words such as face mask, PPE, quarantine, and vaccine became part of our everyday language.
50We spoke about super-spreader events, contact tracing, and shelter-in-place orders.
51We also learned to keep our social distance and to isolate ourselves.
52If 2020 has a bright spot it is this: we all know more about viruses - how they spread, how they change, how to stay safe.
53Many of us even relearned how to wash our hands the right way and how to clean surfaces correctly.
54Programs on these methods were among our most popular.
55However, our listeners showed that they were also interested in stories about other health and lifestyle subjects.
56Stories about cold-weather gardening and composting were popular on our website.
57Also, stories about how to stay happy and to maintain our attention during the pandemic were also well-received.
58And that's the Health & Lifestyle Year in Review from VOA Learning English.
59I'm Anna Matteo.
60And I'm Caty Weaver.
1From VOA Learning English, this is the Health & Lifestyle report. 2Today, we look back on the year 2020. 3In early January, few people knew about a disease that was spreading in the Chinese city of Wuhan. It was caused by a coronavirus similar to SARS which first appeared in southern China in 2002 and MERS which struck the Middle East in 2012. 4A short timeline 5An early report by the Associated Press gave a short timeline of important events at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. 6January 23: The World Health Organization said the viral disease in China that has sickened hundreds of people is not yet a global health emergency. 7January 24: China reports that the number of virus cases has increased to 1,287, and the number of deaths rose to 41. 8January 26: The United States confirmed five cases of the new virus. All cases were people who traveled to the Chinese city of Wuhan. 9On January 30, the World Health Organization's timeline states that the WHO Director-General declared the novel coronavirus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. This is the WHO's highest level of warning. The next day, U.S. President Donald Trump ordered most entry by foreign nationals from China suspended. 10By February 1, the disease had reportedly killed more than 200 people in China and infected thousands. The fast-spreading virus had been confirmed in more than 20 countries and territories. The list included Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. But countries outside of Asia - including the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, Britain, and France - had reported cases. Most of those who had been infected had recently visited Wuhan. 11China barred travel from Wuhan and other cities in central Hubei province. The ban placed a partial quarantine on more than 50 million people - something that had never happened before. 12Early measures to control the spread 13In March, Trump restricted travel from Europe and declared a national emergency. To stop the spread of the virus, Spain locked down its 46 million citizens. France ordered the closing of its most popular attractions - the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre art museum, the cafes, and restaurants. 14Other governments also took measures to contain the coronavirus. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson closed most stores and banned gatherings for three weeks to stop coronavirus. Italy overtook China as the country with most coronavirus-related deaths. 15The human cost of the virus 16The Johns Hopkins University online Coronavirus Resource Center has been tracking the number of cases and deaths. On December 24, it reported that over 1.7 million people have died from COVID-19 around the world. The United States has been hit the hardest with more than 320,000 reported deaths. Second is Brazil with more than 189,000. India is third with just over 146,000. 17But there was also good news. In September the AP also reported that countries on the African continent had been praised for their efforts early in the pandemic. 18New increases in infection 19As new tests for the virus became available, cases began to increase again in November in countries around the world. Officials have blamed holiday travel and gatherings for increases in COVID-19 cases in both Canada and the United States. The U.S. has experienced an increase in both infections and deaths. 20In December, several countries again tightened restrictions on their citizens to reduce the increase in COVID cases. On December 16, cases in Italy neared 2 million with about 70,000 deaths. That made it the highest in Europe. Also on December 16, the AP reported that South Korea was also experiencing a surge, or fast increase in cases. 21Vaccines approved 22However, the end of the year also saw promising news - news of effective vaccines. Two vaccines, one made by the U.S. company Pfizer and Germany's BioNtech, and another by Moderna, have been approved for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Officials have announced the goal of vaccinating at least 20 million Americans by the end of the year. 23On December 8, Britain announced it had started its vaccination effort. Ninety-year-old Margaret Keenan became the first patient to get the Pfizer vaccine in Britain. 24Mutating virus 25Then in late-December, reports from Britain and South Africa suggested that the virus had begun to change, or mutate. However, details of a possible mutated virus remain unclear. 26It is still unknown if this mutated virus will be a problem for the current vaccines. But health officials agree that the approval of effective vaccines marks a turning point in the coronavirus health crisis. 27The virus and language 28In 2020, the worldwide health crisis not only changed how people worked and what they did. It added new words to everyday speech. 29Words such as face mask, PPE, quarantine, and vaccine became part of our everyday language. We spoke about super-spreader events, contact tracing, and shelter-in-place orders. We also learned to keep our social distance and to isolate ourselves. 30If 2020 has a bright spot it is this: we all know more about viruses - how they spread, how they change, how to stay safe. Many of us even relearned how to wash our hands the right way and how to clean surfaces correctly. Programs on these methods were among our most popular. 31Wanting good news 32However, our listeners showed that they were also interested in stories about other health and lifestyle subjects. Stories about cold-weather gardening and composting were popular on our website. Also, stories about how to stay happy and to maintain our attention during the pandemic were also well-received. 33And that's the Health & Lifestyle Year in Review from VOA Learning English. 34I'm Anna Matteo. 35And I'm Caty Weaver. 36Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 37________________________________________________ 38Words in This Story 39quarantine -n. a situation of being kept away from others to prevent the spread of disease 40tracking -v. to follow in an effort to find something out, to watch the progress of something 41mutate -v. to change and create an unusual quality, to change form in a small but meaningful way 42face mask -n. a covering for the face, especially one worn to prevent the spread of disease 43PPE (personal protective equipment) -n. things that are worn to reduce the risk of danger on the job, such as masks, special clothing and hats 44isolate -v. to keep someone or oneself away from others, often to prevent the spread of disease